Almond growers face fines of up to 120,000 euros if they fail to burn wasp-infested trees

The destructive almond wasp has been detected in two groves in Jumilla and Yecla

Following the first appearance in the Region of Murcia of a destructive insect known as the almond wasp (or Eurytoma amygdali to entomologists) the regional government has warned that almond growers who fail to comply with regulations designed to prevent the spread of the pest could face fines of up to 120,000 euros.

The insect was detected last year in the neighbouring province of Albacete and was spotted in two almond groves in the north of Murcia, one in Yecla and the other in Jumilla, in December. In response, the regional government issued an order on 26th December stipulating that all trees affected must be burnt, warning that if no action is taken the wasp could affect as much as 80 per cent of almond production in Murcia.

This estimate is based on the decimation of almond groves in parts of Castilla-La Mancha and the Comunidad Valenciana, and the government warns that any agriculturalist failing to comply will be charged at least with the cost of carrying out the incineration: in cases of “serious” failure, fines of up to 120,000 euros may be levied.

In other parts of the world treatments have been developed, many involving the use of pheromones, to avoid infestations, but in Murcia the wasp is a newcomer and those who cultivate almonds are unaware of how to deal with the pest.

Adult almond wasps are black and between 4 and 8 millimetres long, and they deposit larvae inside almond husks during the spring. This causes the fruit to “mummify” until the pupae emerge the following February and March, and when they are detected farmers are advised to remove all of the fruit from the tree by hand, as mechanical means will not cause it to drop. If the fruit contains a hole, this means that the wasp has flown out.